Chapter 3
Daava and I travelled along the dirt road--through the sunny pasture we had seen before. I spotted the occasional small farm, with locals tending to them and waving as we passed by. One of these farmers looked like an imp from the distance--red, horns, small, and with a tiny tail. We saw him corralling chickens as he mounted a slightly larger rooster with a makeshift saddle. Then there was a ten-foot-tall ogre lady tilling a small vegetable garden. Most of the space, however, seemed to be free-roam dairy cows.
"They're cared for by an elderly elf," Daava said, pointing at a slightly bigger barn up on a hill. "She seems nice--at least she sometimes offers water when I pass this way with the robe deliveries.
Oh, that reminded me to ask, "So how does that work? I noticed the person we... met... before had sandals--the same robes and sandals that I found when I woke up."
Daava nodded. "It's an arrangement that is worked out in the truce between our school and her city. No violence between us, no uninvited trespassing, equal representation for winning newbies to our side. And we have to split the chore of supplying robes and sandals to the temple during Admissions Season. That way, you new arrivals don't remain perpetually naked until someone finds you."
"Admissions season?" I asked, confused. Did a god really abide by the academic calendar?
"The university aligns its schedule to the yearly season when Kavtagro sneaks out to the worlds of other gods to bring people here," Daava explained. "Your arrival is actually the latest I've seen anyone appear, especially given that orientation is this afternoon. That's why nobody was there to officially recruit. I was just assigned to restock for the beginning of next season."
I nodded and remembered what the elf had said about other humans. "So... this Admissions Season was in my world this time?"
Daava nodded.
"What about you?" I asked. "Were goblins last year?"
Daava shook her head. "The goblin people have been around for many years. We have our own city of descendants, which is where I was born. I came, uhm, voluntarily last year. But Admissions collected the Gupium last year and elves the year before. Earlier than that... large bats, I think? It's only a two-year stay for most students, so I never met them."
For some reason, she seemed a little embarrassed when she said she had volunteered to study at Kink U. This emotion struck me as odd, since kink was the basis of this entire world. But maybe the descendants still held taboos since they allegedly didn't engage in any of it. It wouldn't be entirely unlike the world I had come from, where sexuality in general was still largely treated as a no-no, while almost everyone did it and everything from religion to the economy, to laws were built around it.
Either way, it seemed like a sore topic for her, so I didn't pursue further. I just said, "Well that's cool... that you knew what you wanted."
Daava looked at me and gave a small smile. She then pointed up ahead, to where we could now see buildings that did not look like farms. "Here we are."
The largest and most noticeable building was another temple--identical on the outside to the one I had appeared in. Gargoyles on the top, polished black stone making up the rest. Outside of the temple there were several cul-de-sacs comprised of seemingly well-constructed wooden huts with thatch rooves.
As we pulled forward with the wagon, we saw a large assortment of humans and... shiny people in a variety of rainbow colors (the guplium I guessed?). They all wore robes like mine and were headed into the temple.
"You should probably run and catch up with them for freshman orientation," Daava said. "Don't worry about me, I know what's going on around here. I'll just pull the wagon into the shop and be a bit late. Hopefully we'll see each other around."
I felt a bit bad at the idea of leaving her to finish the trip alone, but also aware that she was probably right. "Alright... but I appreciate you helping me and... explaining everything to me." I smiled at her.
Daava gave a side smile. "I appreciate you... baffling that city-elf with that thing you did. Now, go on." She waved me forward.
I nodded and began to hustle toward the other students. I wasn't in the worst shape, but not the best either. So I soon found myself winded and sweaty. Great! Late and gross was not how I would have wanted to start any school orientation. Fortunately, when I reached the doors of the temple, I could hear nothing but the chattering of students. It hadn't started yet!
I walked inside. Like the temple I had appeared in, this one was about the size of an auditorium--complete with back rooms. There was writing on the walls, a banner of creatures in various acts of intercourse, a depiction of Kavtagro, and lightning on the ceiling.
What was different was a stone stage here and rows of long benches facing it. It almost seemed like a church--which made the hairs on the back of my neck feel prickly and uncomfortably warm.